Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) said on Monday that President elect-Donald Trump and his transition team are already breaking the law specific to presidential transitions — by not adhering to it.
“Donald Trump and his transition team are already breaking the law,” Warren wrote in a social media post on Monday. “I would know because I wrote the law. Incoming presidents are required to prevent conflicts of interest and sign an ethics agreement.”
“This is what illegal corruption looks like,” she added.
Warren is referring to the Presidential Transition Act — a law that facilitates an orderly and peaceful transition of power by helping involved parties create an early and organized transition plan. The Trump team already ignored a pair of key preelection deadlines set to start transition activities — including signing a Memorandum of Understanding and submitting an official ethics plan for the transition into the new administration.
In response, lawmakers like Warren are warning of the impacts ignoring these deadlines can have on the country’s national security preparedness on Trump’s first day back in the Oval Office.
Warren’s declaration comes just weeks after Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, sent a letter to Trump and Vice President elect-JD Vance warning them of the dangers of their failure to enter into presidential transition agreements with the federal government.
“Breaking the precedent set by every other presidential candidate since 2010, you have rejected these resources and refused to commit to a smooth transition,” Raskin wrote in his letter dated Oct. 23. “It appears your decision may be at least partially driven by your intent to circumvent fundraising rules that put limits on private contributions on the transition effort and require public reporting. You may also be acting out of a more general aversion to ethics rules designed to prevent conflicts of interest in the incoming administration.”
“Alas, your recent public statements and your conduct four years ago provide cold comfort to the American people, who have sought to create continuity and legitimacy in the transition between administrations,” Raskin continued, warning the two that if the new administration is not ready to govern, “our nation’s adversaries may well see and take advantage of the situation.”
“I strongly urge you to expeditiously sign both MOUs and submit your ethics plan,” he added.
Meanwhile, a Trump adviser tried to downplay the skipped deadlines, saying it is “not at all a concern,” according to CNN.
The adviser also told CNN that Trump intends to sign the ethics pledge — a part of the law in question — but did not specify when he will do so. Instead, he pressed that the main priority for the Trump team is to select and vet candidates for Cabinet positions.
I think this is a very good point by Senator Warren and Representative Raskin.
That said, most people do not care about the technical details of the law. They knew they elected a felon.
I guess it will be useful to have in the hip pocket when something goes south because of the negligence.
Right after he releases the plan to replace Obamacare.
As if that matters any longer to the American people. They licensed him to break any and every law there is.
I’m sure the Ethics statement and MOUs are built into infrastructure week. So, no worries, coming soon.
They’ll likely just flout the law as one of their performative dominance shows. It’s low stakes, reinforces their “laws don’t bind us” stance, and who’s going to enforce it?
Remember the Hatch Act, Logan Act, etc? If no one, even Dems when they’re in power, will enforce the laws against these folks, what do they matter?
Anyway, it’s obvious that this administration would never honor an ethics policy regardless, but it’s just another dominance play reinforcing the message that they’re above the law and the institutionalists are impotent.